Mavericks softball season recap
MIKE MAYNARD | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 5 months, 3 weeks AGO
Mavs Hayden Morris takes a swing at home plate in a game during the 2025 season. Morris was named offensive player of the year and made All-League first team for the Big Nine conference.
FILE PHOTO
Mavs Eryn Eckenberg runs for third base in a game against AC Davis. The Mavs were dominant in that doubleheader, scoring a total of 47 runs and allowing zero runs.
Mavs Mya Martinez makes the out at first against AC Davis. Moses Lake’s doubleheader wins put the Mavs at 11-4 and positioned them strongly to earn higher seeding in the district tournament.
Mavs Paige Richardson pitches in a Big 9 game. Richardson won her second straight league MVP award.
MOSES LAKE — The Mavericks softball team concluded the 2025 season with a 16-9 record and appearances in the 4A district title game and the state tournament. Despite not bringing home hardware, head coach Mike Hofheins said his team had a successful season.
“I think we had confidence within ourselves that we were going to be right in it for a league title, and we were, and we were able to capture the regular season title, and we took second in districts and qualified for state,” he said.
The Mavericks started off 1-2; they won their first game against Walla Walla but dropped two in a row to Mt. Spokane and Richland. Despite the losses, Hofheins said those two games showed him what his team was capable of. According to him, his team was able to hang with both of them and put up a fight.
“We knew that was going to be a test for us (to) kind of see where we were at. And it was 0-0 after five. We were right there with them, but I knew if we could hang with them, we were going to be pretty solid,” Hofheins said.
After those two games, the Mavericks erupted for a five-game win streak. In three of those five wins, they were able to score over 20 runs and only allowed five at most from their opponents. From there, they would drop a game here and there but overall remained dominant against their opponents. Their biggest margin of victory was a 30-0 win over AC Davis.
Hofheins said he felt like some people expected the Mavericks to take a step back after losing seven seniors from the 2024 team. They put together another winning season despite that, going 8-6 playing at home and 8-3 playing on the road.
“Reload, not rebuild, so I feel like that was our mantra this year, and obviously it’s always nice to have the reigning league MVP back in the circle,” Hofheins said.
Given the large turnover, the Mavericks benefited from having reigning league MVP Paige Richardson return as pitcher. She repeated her success this season and earned a second straight MVP award in her senior season. Hayden Morris was named offensive player of the year; she plays shortstop for the Mavericks.
The Mavericks had nine players represented on the Big Nine all-league teams, including honorable mentions.
“When you win the league title, you should be pretty highly represented on the all-league team,” Hofheins said.
Hofheins had high praise for Morris; she joined the team this year after transferring to Moses Lake High School. He said she may be one of the best shortstops in eastern Washington, if not in the state.
“She is the ultimate competitor. Works hard in practice, one of the most clutch, in-the-moment players that I’ve coached in any sport. When the pressure is the tightest, she performs consistently,” he said.
Hofheins also took home coach of the year, an award he appreciates receiving but said he does not want to take credit for. He said it’s a team effort and a reflection of the talented roster and coaching staff he got to work with this season.
The Mavericks fell short in the 4A district title game to Eastmont but bounced back in a crossover game to advance to the state tournament. There, they lost in the first round to Issaquah and then Tahoma by one point in the consolation bracket.
Their season may be over, but Hofheins said his team had a successful season and accomplished a lot. Looking forward to next season, he will have a chance to assess his roster with slow pitch in the fall. There’s a lot of roster overlap, so the Mavericks may not have much rust to shake off when the spring season begins.
“We return starters everywhere, and we should have a great offensive lineup. So yeah, I think we’re going to be in the mix for the league title going down to the last week of the season, just like this year,” Hofheins said.
Mavs Eryn Eckenberg runs for third base in a game against AC Davis. The Mavs were dominant in that doubleheader, scoring a total of 47 runs and allowing zero runs.
Mavs Mya Martinez makes the out at first against AC Davis. Moses Lake’s doubleheader wins put the Mavs at 11-4 and positioned them strongly to earn higher seeding in the district tournament.
Mavs Paige Richardson pitches in a Big 9 game. Richardson won her second straight league MVP award.ARTICLES BY MIKE MAYNARD
Wahluke falls to Tri-Cities in home opener
MATTAWA — The Wahluke Warriors (0-1) were defeated 46-24 in their home opener by the Tri-Cities Prep Jaguars. Despite the loss, Head Coach Makai Hirai said he was proud of the effort his players gave on the court. “That was the biggest thing that I took away is we had a lot of effort. We have a lot of girls who are hungry, and the coaches were excited about (that). Our girls look pretty motivated ... they’re working hard,” Hirai said. The Jaguars started fast and held the lead the entire game. Tri-Cities Prep put up double-digit scores in each quarter except for the third. The Warriors finished strong with 10 points in the fourth quarter, but the Jaguars came out victorious.
From overtime thriller to championship stage
The Knights meet Cashmere once again
ROYAL CITY — On Friday, the No. 1 seed Royal Knights (12-0) will travel to Husky Stadium to play the No. 2 seed Cashmere Bulldogs (11-1) in the 1A state championship game. The Knights Head Coach Wiley Allred was not surprised to see the Bulldogs reach the state championship game. “I was hoping there wasn't a team better than them, because that's a pretty tough team right there. We'll meet our match,” Allred said. When these two met in October, it was the Knights pulling off a late comeback to win 21-15 in overtime. Coming into that game, both teams were undefeated. The Knights had only allowed seven points all season, while the Bulldogs had not allowed a score by any team.
Warriors fall short in home opener
MATTAWA — The Wahluke Warriors (0-1) were defeated 67-43 by the Tri-Cities Prep Jaguars Tuesday in their return to the hardwood. Wahluke Head Coach Anfernee Cortez said some of the loss may be attributed to first-game jitters. “We started too flat and just kind of dug ourselves into a hole early. Against a team like Tri-Cities Prep, it’s tough to catch up at that point,” Cortez said. A slow start by the Warriors allowed Tri-Cities Prep to take hold of the momentum early and build a commanding lead. In the first half, the Warriors struggled to knock down shots and attack the rim. The Jaguars carried their momentum into the second half to run away with the game. Wahluke had a stronger second-half showing, but Cortez said it was not enough to get back in the game.